Review

Leave it to Clive Cussler and Jack DuBrul to create a story
involving maritime exploration and a cult. PLAGUE SHIP has all the
exciting intrigue and fast-paced escapades of the crew of theOregon. Juan Cabrillo, the ship’s captain, leads the
way as Cussler’s hero, in one of the most interesting plots
yet conceived.

Looking like the oldest, most battered ship on the ocean, theOregon actually has the most sophisticated technology and
weaponry known to man. Additionally, it has a world-class chef and
a highly trained staff, all working for NUMA (National Underwater
and Marine Agency). Always with an international flavor, the book
starts out in the port of Barnar Abbas, Iran. Soon they would
venture forth on a mission to research the cause of a disaster on
the cruise ship Golden Dawn. “There had to be 100
corpses on the deck, sprawled in twisted shapes of
agony.”

When the Golden Dawn set off on its voyage, the hundreds
of passengers onboard had two things in common: they were free from
virus, and they were believers in the works of Dr. Lydell Cooper.
His book is titled WE’RE BREEDING OURSELVES TO DEATH, and the
organization founded on his beliefs is the Responsivists, those who
are responsible. They have been working on a plan to intentionally
sterilize three billion people on Earth! “This isn’t
about preventing a few thousand passengers and a crew from having
children. It’s about stopping half the world.”

It is the overwhelming task of Cabrillo and his Oregon
crew to find out the cause of the tragedy on the Golden
Dawn and prevent further incidents from taking place in the
future. Is this the challenge that will stop NUMA in its tracks?
Will this be their greatest victory, or their demise? We can
immediately relate to the terror felt by the NUMA crew as they
quite literally attempt to save the world from destruction.

Written with their usual panache and fervor, Cussler and DuBrul
have produced a book that challenges readers to face real
biological terrorism at the gut level. Beyond the cataclysmic
possibilities of such an event, every adult on earth has an opinion
on human rights and reproduction. Most countries in the world have
human rights policies, which include the rights of their citizens
to reproduce. Consider also the religious significance. Christians
believe that Noah loaded animals two by two, to go forth and
multiply, in an effort to save God’s creatures from
extinction. This was his task in life, his responsibility.
Responsivists believe that it is their responsibility to stop the
human race from populating a future generation.

Even more frightening is Dr. Cooper’s tome on overpopulation:
“Arguably the greatest transfer of wealth in human history
occurred when the Plague swept through Europe and killed a third of
its population. Lands were consolidated, allowing for a greater
standard of living, not only for the owners but also for those who
worked them. This event was the single greatest contributor to the
Renaissance and gave rise to Europe’s eventual domination of
the world.”